A diverter switch is commonly found at an overhead shower fixture junction in order to supply water to a handheld water supply. While the location of a conventional diverter switch greatly simplifies the shower system design, the placement of the diverter switch proximal to the water supply makes access to the switch difficult for children or a user with physical disabilities. As a result, children and disabled users are either denied the option of using a handheld water supply or are susceptible to injury in attempting to reach to gain access to the diverter switch. Additionally, a conventional shower system having a handle in fluid communication with a water supply by way of a diverter switch located at the overhead shower fixture junction results in the length of tubing extending from the diverter switch to the handheld water supply being filled with ambient temperature water such that upon activating the handheld portion of the shower system, a spray lasting several seconds is emitted from the handle sprayer that is not of the user selected shower temperature.
A further limitation associated with a conventional diverter switch is that a user is forced to make a binary selection between a fixed showerhead and a handheld sprayer. As a result, a user is forced to polarize their selection as to desired water source even though the optimal water supply may well be a combination of fixed showerhead and handheld sprayer water supplies.
Thus, there exists a need for a shower handle water supply diverter. Additionally, there exists a need for a shower water diverter switch providing a graded flow between a fixed showerhead and a handle sprayer.